Rating: 
Summary: Railroad caper
Review: Even though this story lacks Lou Boldt, I read it on Pearson's reputation for acute psychological insight. However, this is a mild-mannered thriller in a setting of eastern railroad operations, more in the nature of a caper than a crime. Only people who "deserve to die" for one reason or another do so, in contrast to the shocking Boldt stories. This is a cat-and-mouse story you can sit back and enjoy without the usual stomach-turning surprises. It has many moments of tension but little that is repulsive. Two obsessive and rather gray men are on opposite sides of the law and destined to collide in spiralling violence. Sacked detective Peter Tyler is handicapped not only by an ill-contained temper but claustrophobia as he tries to rebuild his career by solving a series of train derailments. Various police procedures help track the clues back to the perp, an outraged family man known to the reader. Unfortunately I'm made to understand neither how the security agent heroine, Nell, is Black, nor falls in love with Peter, nor turns against her employer in some key episodes.
Rating: 
Summary: This one missed the station
Review: I'm a Ridley Pearson fan, but this book had little going for it but momentum.The plot is unbelievable, forced, but that's perhaps par for the course. The real problem, beyond a trite and stilted liaison between the two main protagonists, stems from a series of plot devices that just don't work. A laptop computer that travels with the antagonist as he rides the rails, and has both the battery life and ruggedness to keep running flawlessly, apparently with a wireless account that can't be tracked. A portable GPS that works from beneath a moving train. An investigator who doesn't dig into his target's personal background as step #1, and so then has to be surprised at the end. These and other gaps require the reader to stop taking the book seriously and instead just let it play like a grade c movie. I also had trouble with one of the basic themes of the book--the main character's defense of his own past involvement in the beating death of a suspect, and endless moaning about the injustice of the court system for bringing him to trial.... It doesn't work. And the frequent rehashing of the same internal dialog finally becomes almost offensive. By trying not to think too much, I could at least finish this book. But it is far from Pearson's generally high standard. On the other hand, the plot built around criminal accounting by corporate execs is suddenly more timely than ever.
Rating:
Summary: Good, fast read
Review: In this latest work, Ridley Pearson takes a break from his Lou Boldt series to tell the story of Peter Tyler, a disgraced ex-cop leading an investigation into an apparent hobo killing. Of course, there is more to it than this, and the crime links to a series of train derailings. Pearson keeps things moving quickly and has the requisite number of plot twists. Tyler and supporting character Nell Priest are likeable enough and the problems they face are formidable. There is, in fact, little that is wrong with this book, except that Tyler and Priest are not as interesting as his series characters of Boldt and Matthews. As a light, fast and fun read, this book fits the bill, but for the best of Pearson, you need to look elsewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: A Top Notch Detective Yarn
Review: I found this story, about a man who derails trains and the detective who tracks him down, fascinating. I liked the different plot, the characters, and the whole "feel" of the book. It is different and very clever. I read it in one day. The sole criticism of the novel for me is that I could not get a real clear picture of the hero, Tyler. Whether that is the fault of the author or it is mine as the reader is unclear to me. I'd like to have known Tyler better, is my complaint. But this is a compelling, fascinating thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Railroad suspense story is a great ride
Review: I enjoyed my first outing with Ridley Pearson that tells the story of murder and sabotage where all is not what it seems. Peter Tyler, an ex-cop who was made a scapegoat for his beating of a child molester, is down on his luck. He lost his job, his girlfriend and is about to lose his house when the National Transportation Safety Board contracts with him for an investigation of a possible homicide in the mid-West. This is his last chance at saving his reputation and perhaps his life and he doesnt intend to mess this up. He vigorously follows all clues and starts to piece together what happened between two men in a boxcar. At the same time we are introduced to Umberto Alvarez who lost his wife and twins when a crossing guard gate did not work. He was attacked in the boxcar by a railroad investigator intent on covering up for the Railroad. Bent on revenge, Alvarez, an ex-Science teacher and computer expert plans to ensure that Northern Union Railroad acknowledges their guilt and suffers financial loss. It is quite interesting to figure out if people are really what they seem. Who are the bad guys and who are the heroes? Tyler is a likable anti-hero and Alvarez is appealing as a "bad guy" who wont hurt anyone in his revenge plans. The Railroad people are usually, but not always, up to no good. I especially enjoyed learning about the railroad industry and in seeing how skillfully Alvarez plots his revenge, using multiple identities, and carefully engineering each step of the way. The plot was very engaging, I couldnt wait to find out what happened next. The romance between Tyler and the Northern Union investigator Nell, was not very passionate or convincing but this was a small blemish on an otherwise engrossing tale.
Rating:
Summary: On Track with this one!
Review: Pearson keeps the pages turning with the adrenaline rush of the chase. He keeps you guessing as to who are the good guys & who are the bad. I got caught up in the twists & turns of this skilled writer. I haven't read anything by Pearson before & I couldn't put it down! I never cross a closed railroad barrier but, thanks to Pearson, I'll be sure now to look both ways before I cross open tracks too. Don't miss this one!
Rating:
Summary: It's not the Chattanooga Choo-Choo
Review: I LIKE Amtrak - it's cozy and one can sit back and enjoy the scenery - the segment on the "Empire Builder" between Minneapolis/St. Paul and LaCrosse, Wisconsin along the Mississippi River is especially beautiful. This techno-thriller about terrorism against railroads had the bad timing to have been published this summer - just months before September 11. Nonetheless, it is a good, taut thriller involving a US Bullet-type train; Peter Tyler, an unjustly "fallen" ex-cop; Umberto Alvarez, a science teacher whose family just happened to be at a railroad crossing in Genoa, IL at the wrong time; and (somewhat trite)greedy corporate executives and their sleazy 'security" entourage. It's worth the trip!
Rating:
Summary: Right On Track!
Review: Can't understand the negative reviews. This thriller about the railroads ran just like a train; eases out at first, picks up speed, rushes to an exciting climax, and slows to a satisfying stop. Unlike the opinion of the some reviewers, the characters were given just enough depth. Pearson does a wonderful job of shifting the reader's sympathies from the good guys to the bad guys; in fact one is never quite sure who is wearing the white hat in this very solid read. This novel is absolutely worth the trip.
Rating:
Summary: Unfortunately . . . .
Review: I have read most of Ridley Pearson's Boldt/Matthews novels and have thoroughly enjoyed them. They have good character development, realistic dialogue, and a compelling, interesting plot. Unfortunately, this non-Boldt novel has none of those. Though the plot is reasonably entertaining, the characters are among the most uninteresting I have ever encountered and, for the most part, are totally unbelievable. I don't think I've read a sillier love story in my life than the one between Tyler and Priest; it takes a lot to wade through some of the scenes wherein Tyler repeatedly is distracted by Priest's alleged beauty and wants nothing more than to grab her, caress her, and so on...Holy Bad Romance Novel!! Ridley Pearson is a good writer and he can do better than this. Like some other reviewers, I suspect that this may be an older piece of work that he pulled out of the attic and dusted off. It simply doesn't read like some of his more recent (and much better) efforts. I eagerly await the next Boldt/Matthews tale and I suggest that others who like Pearson's work do the same.
Rating: 
Summary: Suspense comes later
Review: I got this book because I thought it would be a good suspense read, one that would keep me up reading till 3 in the morning. Well, this wasn't it...at least until later in the book. The plot was dragged out beyond belief. It was only when you got t0 the last few chapters of the book that you didn't want to put it down. It could have used a couple more suspensful moments throughout the book to keep the reader interested. When I get a new suspense/thriller book I usually read it within a week. This book took me a month and a half. I just wasn't excited about picking it up at nite. So, if you buy it just be prepared to wait for the exciting parts.
| 
